


the lake, gillyweed, and how the moon looked at three in the morning

by Lyncias



Series: call it magic, call it true [3]
Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game), Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, Drabble, Gen, One Shot, Ryuseitai, and this is their friendship origin story, because of back to hogwarts, jkr wasn't lying when she say Hogwarts always gon be here, result of a wall of Harry Potter feels slamming into me yesterday, they're gonna be best friends
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-03
Updated: 2018-09-03
Packaged: 2019-07-06 05:50:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,580
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15879831
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lyncias/pseuds/Lyncias
Summary: Chiaki dragged Midori out of his dorm at three in the morning, and Midori wonders what in Merlin's name can possibly justify it.





	the lake, gillyweed, and how the moon looked at three in the morning

**Author's Note:**

> So yesterday was Back to Hogwarts day and at 10pm I got hit by a BRICK WALL of Harry Potter feels when I'm playing enstars so I just jumped to my google doc and wrote this. I'm definitely going to write more HP AU because I'm in the mood and I want to see the boys as wizards. Some aspects of the world building may be off btw. I did some research but I couldn't find some stuff so I just went with it
> 
> Thanks for clicking !! Hope you enjoy!

Midori wondered what can possibly justify Chiaki dragging him out of bed at three in the morning.

“Trust me,” Chiaki said when he led Midori through dim Gryffindor common room. One of the hearths was glowing faintly with dying embers. Yuta’s cat stalked through the room, its yellow eyes gleaming from shadows.

The hallway outside surprisingly bright. The silvery light of the moon fell into the castle-like glittering jewels. The portraits on the walls were all asleep, snoring softly as the two boys snuck past them, holding their breath and gripping their wands.

“Where are we going?” Midori asked between yawns. He rubbed his eyes and wiped the tears on his pajamas.

“You’ll see,” Chiaki breathed. He peeked around the corner and down another stretch of hallway. Midori vaguely recognized the hall that led down to the Great Hall. It’s been three years since he first came to Hogwarts, but he had never ventured out of his dorm at night. The usual hallways became a labyrinth waiting to be explored.

“I have class tomorrow,” he muttered.

“I’ll get you back in time for it,” Chiaki promised.

“It’s already too late,” Midori grumbled under his breath. His words sounded thunderous in the silence, but he wasn’t sure if Chiaki heard him.

They continued their journey, making their way towards the door at the Great Hall. As they approached it, Midori saw that it was left open, night air streaming into the castle. In the shadow next to the door stood two other dim shapes, fading in and out of the shadows, waiting for someone. Midori blinked, recognizing his classmates.

“They’re early,” Chiaki said, sounding impressed.

Tetora and Shinobu were by the door, chatting mindlessly. Tetora was leaning against the door and yawning when Chiaki waved at them. Shinobu waved back enthusiastically with a wide grin on his face. Midori wondered how he had so much energy.

“Hey guys,” Chiaki beamed.

“Where are we going?” Tetora asked, blinking slowly as he straightened himself.

“You’ll see,” Chiaki said, “come one.”

He led the three out of the castle and into the courtyard. The night was cool, the wind crispy and smelled like wet earth and the Lake. A few wisps of cloud drifted across the moon. In a few days, it will be full. Insects chirped in the undergrowth. A few owls were perched on the roofs, glaring down at the four boys making their way across the castle ground. Midori shifted uncomfortably as they walked past a screech owl, its wide yellow eyes reminding him of the scrawny Mrs Norris.

The wind rustled through the grass and tugged their hair. Not far ahead, Midori could catch a glimpse of the Lake, rippling under the moon.

“Is that you wanted to show us?” Tetora asked. “The Lake?”

Chiaki shook his head. “You’ll see,” he said. The night gave his words an air of mystery. Shinobu trailed behind Chiaki, almost brimming with excitement.

“How are you so energetic?” Tetora asked wearily.

“Nighttime is my hours,” Shinobu said cheerily. Chiaki nodded in approval.

Midori ran a hand through his hair. The night air had blown away some of his sleepiness, but he was still exhausted, his body heavy from the Quidditch tryout Chiaki had dragged him to earlier and his mind so centered on the idea of waking up for classes tomorrow that he could hardly spare any thoughts to consider what Chiaki was going to show them and whether it was worth getting up at three in the morning for. At this particular moment, Midori thought, nothing’s worth it.

But as he made his way down towards the Lake with Chiaki without saying anything. As closer they get to the Lake, his curiosity grew, wrapping around his mind like vines. He glanced at Chiaki, his hair gilded by the soft moonlight. Next to him, Tetora yawned.

A bat glided by overhead as they reached the Lake. Midori peered into the dark water curiously and found his own reflection staring back at him. The Lake looked like a piece of obsidian, set into the ground by the hands of a giant. A slight breeze blew by but it did not disturb the smooth water.

Next to Shinobu, Tetora was craning his neck and staring at the Lake, but he did not see anything that could be of interest, least of all something that could justify being dragged out of bed at this hour.

Chiaki glanced around to make sure no one was around, then he walked closer to the Lake. The three underclassmen watched him with silent intrigue as he crouched down and called out softly to the water. “It’s me,” he said, the wind taking his words and sending it across the water in a series of soft ripples.

The water at far from the shore bubbled, then a trail of bubbles led towards where Chiaki was crouching. Midori felt his heart rate pick up, remembering tales of monsters living in the Lake. Evidently, his two friends had the same thought as well, as the three of them edged away from the water in unison, never taking their eyes off of the Lake. They’ve been at Hogwarts for three years and the closest thing they’ve seen in the Lake was the friendly squid, but one never knows what the ancient school was hiding under its surface.

A shape broke through the water, splashing water onto the shore. The three boys jumped, Shinobu letting out a tiny yelp. Midori grabbed Tetora’s arm as they moved farther away from the Lake. Chiaki took a step back nonchalantly as the figure rose up from the water, revealing a person’s outline. Midori narrowed his eyes. It was dark and he couldn’t see quite well, but something about the person felt familiar.

“Is that Kanata Shinkai? From Slytherin?” Tetora murmured to the other two under his breath as Chiaki greeted the newcomer.

“I think it is,” Shinobu said as Chiaki turned to them. Midori blinked as Chiaki led the newcomer to them.

Once close, it was easy to see who he was. He was a bit of an enigma, even in a place like Hogwarts, where secrets were built into the walls and new mysteries awaits around every corner—sometimes quite literally. Midori didn’t know much about the blue-haired Slytherin, but then again did anyone knows him? He was rarely in class, Midori had heard, instead spending most of his days in the Lake, bobbing up and down with the waves, though he somehow managed to maintain a grade that kept him in the top ten percent of his class. And no one knew much about his family, except that it was pureblood and that it was powerful.

There are many rumors about him, as it happens to be with anything that holds an air of mystery. Some say he was half-merpeople, occasionally even going as far as saying he is a merperson that somehow gained human forms. Some say he practiced the dark art (as people tend to, about anyone they do not understand), others say he is the best at defense against dark art in his year. One particularly popular (and widely believed, though quite ridiculous) rumor is that he was a Death Eater. By all account, the only thing the students know for sure about Kanata Shinkai is that they knew nothing about him.

And now, this mystery that exists, up until this moment, purely in rumors and across the Great Hall is standing there, dripping wet but smiling widely.

Midori almost didn’t know how to react.

“So, you brought us here to show us a person?” Tetora asked with a small frown.

Chiaki shook his head and glanced at Kanata, who turned to him and asked, “do you trust them?” His voice had a gentle dreaminess Midori wasn’t quite expecting.

“Of course,” Chiaki said. “I won’t just take anyone here.”

Kanata nodded and turned to the three underclassmen. Under the moon, his green eyes shone. Midori had a strange feeling that he was being judged, tried for his worthiness to witness whatever Chiaki wanted to show them.

“Come,” Kanata said at last. He beckoned them forward and held out a hand. In his hands lies a ball of wet, slimy seaweed.

Gillyweed, Midori thought, recognize the plant. He had read about it earlier that week in his Herbology textbook.

Tetora looked at Chiaki, asking silently, you sure about this? Chiaki gave a brisk nod in response. “You won’t regret it,” he promised.

Shinobu was the first to take the gillyweed. “He hasn’t lied to us yet,” he said with a shrug as he held the plant in his fingers. From the look on his face, he wasn’t nearly as unconcerned about the plant as he sounded, but he closed his eyes and stuffed the plant into his mouth anyway.

Midori and Tetora cringed as Shinobu grimaced, the gillyweed coming into effect, small gills formed on his neck. He made a noise somewhere between a groan and a whimper as Kanata grabbed him by the hand and guided him towards the water. Midori and Tetora held their breath as Shinobu disappeared under the dark water, anxiously waiting for the boy to resurface.

A few tense and slow seconds later, Shinobu appeared again, his head bobbing in the water a few feet off of the shore. He waved at Tetora and Midori and disappeared into the water again.

Tetora was the second to take the gillyweed. Midori only a few moments after him. The change came faster than he had expected. He felt his lungs grow heavy as gills sprouted out of his neck and the air become unbreathable. Kanata took their hands and led them to the water. His hand was cold and wet and smooth.

The world felt disorientating when Midori submerged in the water. He felt like a drowning man finally breaking the surface and getting a lung full of fresh air, except that he was diving deeper into the water instead of going up. He heard Chiaki jumping into the water after him and saw he swam up to Kanata, the two exchanging a few words. Tetora, like Midori, was still trying to adjust to the change in his environment. Midori squeezed his eyes a few times, trying to get used to the darkness.

Through the slightly hazy water, he saw Kanata waving and beckoning them to come closer. Midori glanced at Tetora and Shinobu, then the three followed Kanata and Chiaki deeper into the Lake, towards wherever the two older boys were taking them.

It didn’t take long for them to reach their destination. A patch of clearing in the tangled mess of seaweed forest. Even at this depth, there was light, cutting through the dark water. Kanata stopped and opened his mouth, calling out to something. His words came out strange. Midori could catch a few words he could understand, and the others sounded like it belonged to a language he could comprehend but something was off.

Soon enough, figures began to appear. Shadows lurking in the seaweed forest coming into the light. Midori’s eyes widened when he saw what they were.

“Mermaids,” Tetora whispered next to him. Except that they weren't beautiful like the storybooks had described. They were tall, with long, powerful grey tails. Their skin a hollow grey, faces a mixture of human and fish. Some carried spears.

“They’re merpeople,” Chiaki explained, “technically they’re called selkies.”

One of the selkies swam to Kanata and the two greeted each other fondly. Midori saw Kanata gesturing towards them. He wondered what they were saying. He looked to Chiaki, but Chiaki was staring at Kanata and wasn’t paying attention to anything else. Kanata and the selkie seemed to have reached an agreement, though the selkie seemed a bit reluctant.

“For you,” it muttered. For some reason, Midori understood its words. The selkies turned and quickly swam away, retreating again into the darkness. Midori looked around, confused as to what had just happened. He turned to Chiaki and opened his mouth, but Chiaki stopped him. “Just wait,” he said, pressing a finger against his lips.

Kanata swam over to join them. He wore a grin on his lips and he looked almost mischievous. Midori, Shinobu, and Tetora glanced at each other, anxious about what is going to happen next.

Then, as they were growing impatient, they heard music. At first it was faint, a tingle at the back of the mind. Midori almost dismissed it as the effect of the silence and his tired mind. But the music only grew louder. It came from all directions, surrounding them. Midori couldn’t see any of the selkies, except for a quick glimmer of scales out of the corner of his eyes, but he knew they were there.

The music filled the water. It sounded like the moon itself became music that flowed down from the night, hollow and echoing in the darkness. It reminded him of nights on the astronomy tower, lying on the ground to watch the meteor shower and how bright the stars shone. Of the Great Hall and all of its festivities, the laughter and chattering that lingered in the high-vaulted ceiling. It reminded him of the first time he met Tetora and Shinobu, under the beech tree next to the Lake, and the sunlight that looked like liquid gold.

Chiaki and Kanata were grinning like little kids who had just accomplished their greatest goal. They glanced at each other and laughed, amused by the looks on the younger boys’ faces.

When the song ended, Midori felt his eyes growing sore and half expected to feel tears rolling down his cheeks when he realized he was still underwater. Next to him, Tetora and Shinobu were both wide-eyed, their mouths agape at the wonder of what they just heard.

Midori hoped that he’d hear more songs, but the selkies had all but disappeared, plunging them back into the uncomfortable silence, broken occasionally by the sound of the Lake.

“Come on,” Chiaki said, “the gillyweed will wear off in a few.”

Midori frowned as they swam towards the surface, Kanata swimming around them. He caught Midori’s eyes and gave him a wide smile and Midori wondered how anyone could think he has anything to do with the dark arts.

The gillyweed wore off a little bit before they hit the surface. When they broke the surface, Midori felt his lungs burning like he had just laughed himself breathless. It had been a long time since he laughed like that, but now he felt like laughing. He was floating in a Lake with a Giant Squid in it in the middle of the night with nothing the moon to light his path and he was laughing because he had become witness to the most beautiful sound the in the world.

And so he laughed. He laughed like he hadn’t laughed since he came to Hogwarts. His friends were surprised for a moment, then they joined in as they bobbed to the shore. The five boys laid on the sandy shore, breathless. In the distance, the horizon began to lighten, but Midori felt no rush to return to his dorm. Next to him, Chiaki pushed himself off of the ground. “See,” he said with a wink. “I told you, you won't regret it.”

And Midori thought Chiaki was right and perhaps something was worth getting out of bed at three in the morning, after all.


End file.
